Ecology

The branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical environment.

Ecosystems

A community of organisms together with their physical environment, viewed as a system of interacting and interdependent relationships and including such processes as the flow of energy through tropic levels and the cycling of chemical elements and compounds through living and nonliving components of the system.  This means that all the organisms in the ecosystem interact with each other and the nonliving factors.

Limiting Factors

Limiting factors are anything that restricts the number of organisms that can live there.  Resources can be limiting factors.  If there are to many squirrels and not many trees or food, some of the squirrels will have to leave.  The same for water and other resources.  

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is how many different animals can live in an ecosystem.  Diversity is good because if more animals are in an ecosystem, more animals can live there.  If there are more different types of predators surpassingly, more animals can live there because more things can be eaten by those predators and that creates more energy and more food.

Animals Relating to Each Other

Animals relate to each other just like we do.  They use sounds an body language to communicate.  Animals need to communicate to tell each other when predators are coming, about food and for mating calls.  

Symbiotic Relationships

Symbiotic relationships are the way two organisms interact with each other.  There are three types of relationships, parasitism, mutualism and commensalism.  Mutualism is where both organisms benefit. Clown fish make their homes in anemone and clean them while the anemone protects them.  Commensalism in where one benefits and the other in unharmed.  Crows follow cows while they are grazing because they stir up bugs and then the the cows can eat them.  Parasitism is where one benefits and the other is harmed.  worms get into animals and start eating everything in their digestive track.

Plant and Animal Adaptations

Animals and plants have to adapt to an environment that is new to them just like we would.  Some common adaptations would be growing a thick coat of fur if it is cold or learning a new way to hunt.  They have to change from what they are used to to something new.  It usually takes a long time for a species to adapt and may take up to million years, such as chickens have evolved from dinosaurs.  For plants, adapting is different.  They may start to lose their leaves earlier or may come up earlier in the spring.

Biotic and Abiotic Factors 

Biotic and abiotic factors make up a whole ecosystem. Biotic factors are all the living things like animals and plants.  Abiotic factors are all the nonliving things like dirt, water, rocks and air.

Populations

A population is all of the same species in an ecosystem. A population of rabbits is all the rabbits in the ecosystem.

Community

A community is all the populations in an ecosystem.